Weather and Traffic

Strong storms hit region, flood advisory issued

A line of strong thunderstorms is moving through the area, however the threat of wind damage is over, Storm Center 7 Chief Meteorologist Jamie Simpson said.

The storms are producing lots of lightning and steady, but not as heavy, rain, he said. The storms should end by 3 a.m., but some minor flooding will continue.

The National Weather Service in Wilmington issued a flood advisory through 2:30 a.m. for Wayne County in Indiana. More than an inch of rain fell in about an hour, which will lead to ponding of water on roadways and minor flooding of low lying and poorly drained streets, underpasses and on farmland near creeks, streams and drainage ditches, according to the NWS.

The storms also are causing some power outages across the region.

Dayton Power & Light Co. reported nearly 150 customers without power as of midnight, according to its online outage map. The outages included 100 in Darke County; 18 in Preble County; 17 in Montgomery County; four in Miami County; and one each in Auglaize, Greene and Logan counties.

Law enforcement reported a tree down as a result of wind damages at 10:52 p.m. in Greenville, Darke County, the NWS reported.

Related

Friday: A lull in the rain should start the day, but a few lighter showers may be around. Then more scattered showers and storms are expected to develop with heavy rain, hail and strong winds -- all threats through the afternoon into evening, Simpson said. Highs will be in the mid- to upper 80s. Rain activity will taper down Friday evening. Overnight lows will be in the upper 60s.

Saturday: It will be partly sunny with the chance of a few isolated showers or thunderstorms; some parts of the region will have a dry day.

One significant change is that Simpson said he is no longer forecasting a heat wave.

"Expected highs this weekend are only going to reach the upper 80s for one very simple reason -- all the rain we have seen so far and will continue to get the next 24 to 30 hours," Simpson said. "The ground will be too wet to hit 90, I believe."

Much of the energy from the sun will go into evaporating ground moisture that would otherwise be used for heating the ground and in turn the air above the ground. However, Simpson said this will keep humidity levels high through the weekend.

Sunday: It should stay dry, although an isolated shower or storm can't be ruled out due to the high humidity, Simpson said. Skies will be partly cloudy with highs in the upper 80s.

Monday: It will stay dry, and should be the sunniest day of the next five. Highs will reach 90 degrees.

Tuesday: An approaching cold front will bring the return of thunderstorms late in the day. Highs will be in the upper 80s, so Simpson said there is a chance some of th estorms could become strong or severe.